A blogger and street activist, Joseph Gitonga Kihanya, also known as Gitonga Archives, was on Friday arraigned before a Nairobi court over allegations of extortion from Co-operative Bank.

Has been released on cash bail of 50,000 Kenyan shillings.

Kihanya has been accused of demanding Sh500,000 from the bank via proxy, Amos Hunja Mwangi, in an attempt to remove an alleged defamatory video published on his TikTok account.

When he appeared before City Court Magistrate Grace Ouko, Kihanya denied the charge of demanding property with menaces, contrary to Section 302 of the Penal Code, which had been brought against him by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Magistrate Grace Ouko issued a gag order prohibiting Kihanya from publishing any defamatory statements about the Co-operative Bank or its staff on social media pending the hearing of the case.

Kihanya stands accused of demanding Sh500,000 from Hunja and threatening to further damage the bank’s reputation on social media.

The court heard that the accused had repeatedly posted defamatory content about Co-operative Bank of Kenya and its staff on his social media accounts.

According to the charge sheet, between 20 and 27 July 2025, within Nairobi County, Kihanya and another individual demanded a sum of 500,000 Kenyan shillings from  a bank official Amos Hunja Mwangi.

The street activist was accused of posting claims on his TikTok account alleging that 1.6 billion Kenyan shillings had been stolen from client accounts at the bank.

He allegedly contacted Mwangi, and demanded payment in exchange for removing the post and stopping further defamatory content about the bank.

“Mr Kihanya told me plainly that if I didn’t pay him Sh500,000, he would continue pushing the story online and drag the Co-operative Bank’s name through the mud,” said Mwangi in his statement to the police.

The case was first reported under OB 49/27/07/2025 at Central Police Station in Nairobi.

After denying the charge, Kihanya pleaded to be released on reasonable bail terms through his lawyers, Joshua Nyamori and Black Omanga, saying he is unwell and cannot raise a hefty bond as he survives on the goodwill of others.

“He has no stable income and survives on the goodwill of others. He is not in a position to raise hefty bail terms,” his lawyer, Mr Nyamori, said.